Soft and chewy Rocky Road Cookies are rich chocolate cookies packed with gooey melted marshmallows and toasted crunchy almonds. The classic flavor combination in a cookie!
You’re going to love these at cookie exchanges for Christmas, summer bake sales, and just enjoying with your family any time of year!
I first published this rocky road cookie recipe in 2011, but it was time for an update. So, I’ve updated it with new pictures, information, and an easier to read recipe card with instructions.
If you love chocolate and marshmallows, you just have to check out my Chocolate s’more pie, Marshmallow hot fudge sauce, and chocolate marshmallow moonpies. And be sure not to miss all of my other cookie recipes.
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Fudgy Cookies
I found this drop cookie recipe via Pão e queijo blog (which, as far as I can tell means Bread and Cheese). And, she found this recipe via A Cozy Kitchen. It’s a spin-off of a Martha Stewart chocolate cookie recipe.
Pro tips for how to make these cookies
Be sure to scroll down to the printable recipe card below for full ingredient amounts and instructions.
Toast the almonds
If the slivered almonds aren’t already toasted, you’ll want to do that first. Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat, and pop them in a preheated 350° F oven for about 5 minutes. Give them a stir, and place them back in the oven for another 3-5 minutes until they are golden brown and fragrant.
Be sure to keep an eye on them as they toast. They can go from raw to burned in no time flat.
Let the almonds cool, and give them a rough chop.
Prep work
Preheat the oven, and line your cookie sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Be sure to use parchment paper or a silicone mat on your baking sheet. The marshmallows can melt and stick to the pan, so it’s much easier to remove the cookies when they are baked on parchment paper.
Make the dough
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt until well combined.
- For the cocoa powder, in the original photos I used regular natural unsweetened cocoa powder. For the updated photos I used Special Dark 100% cacao powder. I love the dark color and the rich flavor. Either will work here.
In a small glass bowl, melt the chocolate chips with the butter in the microwave in 30-second increments, stirring between each. You could also do this on the stovetop in a double boiler, but the microwave is so easy.
- For the new updated photos, I used dark chocolate chips, which have more than 35% cacao. Semisweet chocolate also typically contains about 50% sugar, so the dark chocolate chips are not as sweet.
Place the chocolate and butter mixture in a large bowl, and add the sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Mix with a sturdy fork, hand mixer, or stand mixer until well combined.
I like to mix cookies with a fork instead of a stand mixer. It helps me get a little arm workout, and I don’t have to clean a machine afterwards.
Slowly mix in the flour mixture until just combined.
Fold in the mini chocolate chips, the 1 cup of marshmallows, and the chopped almonds.
Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes or up to 3 days in advance. Please don’t skip chilling the dough. If you do, the cookies will spread too much.
Shape the dough
Using a cookie scoop, make balls of dough. Roll the dough in your hands to make a nice round compact ball, and place them on the lined cookie sheet, leaving a couple of inches of space between each one so that the cookies can spread a little.
Stick two to 3 mini marshmallows in each raw cookie, pressing down lightly. You can even add some almonds to the top if you want.
- Don’t be afraid to load them with toppings before baking. That way, when the cookies are done baking, they’ll look super appealing. That’s why pictures of cookies always look amazing, because those toppings really pull you in!
Bake the cookies
Bake about 15 minutes, or until the cookies are slightly puffy in the center but crispy around the edges, and the marshmallows have turned golden and melty.
These cookies will seem a bit soft when you take them out of the oven. They firm up as they cool, so be careful not to over bake them.
Carefully pull the tray of cookies out of the oven, and let cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes to harden. Transfer to wire rack and let cool completely.
Cookies can be stored in an airtight container on the counter at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Storing and Freezing
Cookies can be stored in an airtight container on the counter at room temperature for up to 5 days.
To freeze cookies, allow them to cool completely, place them in an airtight container in a single layer, then add a layer of parchment paper, and continue to stack them in this manner. Place them in the freezer for up to 1 month.
Almonds and walnuts are the original rocky road nuts.
I call for almonds in these cookies, but really, they’re your cookies, use your favorite nut. Or use whatever nut you have in the kitchen.
By the way, nuts will stay fresher longer if you store them in the freezer. Even pre-toasted nuts store really well in the freezer.
The story goes that, in 1929, William Dreyer cut up marshmallows and nuts, then he mixed them into chocolate ice cream. Later that year, when the stock market crashed, the name of the flavor became Rocky Road, “to give folks something to smile about.”
Traditionally, Rocky Road is this chocolate-based ice cream flavor, but today there are many dessert treats with rocky road flavors, and everyone loves them!
I guess it makes these s’mores-like cookies!
If you are looking for a cookie to take to a Christmas cookie exchange, I’m pretty certain this one would be a real winner!
Yes, these cookies can be made gluten free by using King Arthur’s gluten free measure for measure flour or Bob’s Red Mill.
Use it as a one for one substitute for regular flour.
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Recipe
Rocky Road Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup All-purpose flour
- ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup granulated white sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ½ cup mini chocolate chips
- 1 cup mini marshmallows plus additional for garnish
- 1 cup toasted slivered almonds roughly chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325° F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat .
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt until well combined.1 cup All-purpose flour, ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder, ½ tsp baking soda, ½ tsp salt
- In a small heatproof (glass) bowl, melt the chocolate chips with the butter in the microwave in 30-second increments, stirring between each.½ cup chocolate chips, 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- Transfer the chocolate and butter mixture to a large bowl, and add the sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Mix with a sturdy fork, a hand mixer, or a stand mixer until well combined. Slowly mix in the flour mixture until just combined. Fold in the mini chocolate chips, the 1 cup of marshmallows, and the chopped almonds.1 cup granulated white sugar, 2 large eggs, 1 tsp vanilla extract, ½ cup mini chocolate chips, 1 cup mini marshmallows, 1 cup toasted slivered almonds
- Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes to an hour, until slightly firm. Using a 1 ½ tablespoon cookie scoop, make balls of dough, roll the dough to make compact balls, and place them on the lined cookie sheet, leaving a couple of inches of space between each one. Stick 2 to 3 mini marshmallows in each raw cookie, pressing down lightly.
- Bake about 15 minutes, or until the cookies are slightly puffy in the center but crispy around the edges, and the marshmallows have turned golden and melty. Carefully pull the cookies out of the oven, and let cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes to harden. Transfer to wire rack and let cool completely. Devour.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations, and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary based on brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes, and more.
These look great, my fam and I just devoured them 🙂 I’m sure your grandma’s recipe is wonderful, too!
I CAN’T REFUSE A COOKIE!!! MMMMM THESE ARE SO GOOD! CHOCOLATE AND MARSHMALLOWS!
I love anything rocky road, and these are wonderful! Love the crunch in the chocolate cookie!
My husband LOVES these! They were supposed to be for a cookie swap, but he ate them all, so I have to make another batch!
These are so good. I love the smell fresh from the oven! Those marshmallows on top make the so special!
These are amazing! I was just thinking about coming up with some type of smores-like cookie, and then I found this! Thanks for sharing! They were easy to make and so yummy!
These turned out so good, was looking for a super chocolately cookie and these checked all the boxes!